Chapter 226 - Meeting In The Elder's Mansion

The doors of the living room opened wide, with both Elder Donovan and Elder Luciano stepping inside the room as if they were trying to compete on who would come first. Donovan looked at the people who were gathered in the room, noticing the deep frown that now hung upon Dante's face. 

"What's going on?" questioned Donovan.

"It is the meeting that I earlier spoke about," Luciano rolled his eyes as if Donovan was dumb enough to not remember about it. 

Donovan walked to one side of the empty couch, and he pushed his coat behind before taking a seat. It was only after a few seconds did he notice that the headmistress of Veteris didn't look away from him. 

"What?" he questioned her. 

"Elder Donovan, Elder Luciano," Ms. Dante started, where the blonde Elder vampire took a seat on the opposite side of the couch. 

"Have you decided to take the opinion of everyone?" Elder Luciano questioned Elder Remy, who was earlier present when he had spoken about the hunter's boy.

The frown on Ms. Dante's face turned even deeper, and her lips twisted in displeasure, "I have requested the Elders to gather here so that we could discuss what happened this evening in the main building." She then turned to look at Luciano and said, "Griffin told me that you were the one who ordered him to get Ms. Winters? Both Griffin and Roman burnt and destroyed the main building this evening without caring about the consequences." 

Griffin's eyes widened when Luciano turned to look at him. He said, "It wasn't me who burned the things in there, Ms. Dante. Roman is the one who has the ability of fire and not me. I was only following my Elder's command." 

"I didn't ask you, Griffin," Ms. Dante quietly glared at the boy for him to shut his mouth. 

Luciano slightly rolled his eyes, "I thought we were going to discuss the hunter."

Donovan crossed his legs one over the other before letting his back lean against the plush couch. 

The blonde Elder vampire replied to Ms. Dante, "Yes, I was the one who ordered Griffin to get the girl so that I could question her actions. She harmed two of my guards and went so far as to attempt to kill Griffin in the hands of her Corvin. I can only imagine what ill intentions she must have had when she decided to harm them." 

"Your imagination runs wilder than the horses that I once owned," retorted Donovan, and his words irked Luciano to no end. "Griffin must have done something that must have forced her to defend herself."

"Defending and killing are two different things," Luciano pointed with a glare, and he turned to look at Julie. "Do you deny that you didn't harm and summon your Corvin to hurt them?" 

Julie shook her head, "Griffin was the one who first started it."

Same like his Elder vampire, Griffin glared at Julie, "I never tried to harm her. I politely asked her to follow me to the dungeon after catching her red handed tampering with the cameras." 

"It was a misunderstanding. I found out from Caleb that Dennis had previously caught him near the camera's. The direction in which the cameras were supposed to focus, had been changed. And it created a blindspot for the people who have been trying to sneak in and out of Veteris," explained Julie, in one breath. "We never tried to change anything." 

"Lies," accused Luciano, and this time it was Donovan who rolled his eyes. "The witch is trying to get hold of Willow Creek and the morms are helping the Mortimiers to get Veteris."

"That's a very expansive plan, Luciano," commented Castiel. "Aren't you being a little too harsh on Julianne, just because she is the daughter of a witch?" 

"It doesn't erase the fact that witches have tried to secretly thrive above vampires," Luciano's words were sharp. "Have you forgotten how the witches stole your family?" The question was directed to Elder Remy, who sat there quietly, listening to them. 

"It doesn't mean that every witch is the same as who killed your and Elder Remy's family," defended Roman, not liking Julie being accused of something she had no idea about until now. "Griffin has the habit of exaggerating things especially when it comes to my things and people who are close to me." 

Griffin huffed, looking at Roman with a sneer, "I caught the girl and the morm sitting on the tree. They were doing something to the camera. If Julianne really was innocent, she should have just followed me. It isn't like Elder Luciano would do anything bad to her and only wanted to ask her questions." 

"She probably smelt your bad intention, considering how you unsuccessfully tried to hurt and attack her in the past," responded Roman, turning his body to face Griffin, and the other boy did the same. "I have told you before, stop trying to bring Julie into something that she is not part of." 

"I am sorry but I don't support a witch who is trying to bring harm to Veteris," Griffin acted as if he had no idea what Roman was talking about. 

Roman's hands clenched, and when the room started to turn hot, Ms. Dante warned him, "Roman Moltenore, you shall not burn this building next. I will have to remove your name from the university, and you shall not get your final certificates." 

"As if something like that will bother me," replied Roman. Did the vampiress think he was a human to be scared about a plain threat like this? 

"Elder Donovan," Ms. Dante turned to look at the vampire. 

"Let us speak calmly. When has bloodshed ever been a solution to any problem?" came the cheerful voice of Azazel Donovan. Most of the people in the room turned their gaze from Roman and Griffin to look at Donovan, who raised his eyebrows, "What? It is true." 

Roman openly threatened Griffin by saying, "You should start counting your stars for being alive. If it weren't for Dante, I would have made sure to see you to be dead." 

"Huh? Are you sure about that? Considering how you had fallen on your knees and was ready to beg me to spare your life," Griffin retorted back to Roman's words. 

"How about we try it now and see?" Roman challenged Griffin, who was ready to raise his hand to punch Roman square in the face, but Luciano interrupted them,

"That's enough. I am more interested to know about what this witch did." 

The living room had turned chaotic because everyone was speaking out of turn. Julie replied to Luciano's words, "I have nothing to do with the Mortimers. I have already explained it."

"That is what all schemers and liars say," said Luciano. 

"You sound like a broken recorder, Luciano," pointed Donovan, and he was tired of Luciano being stuck to it. 

"Maybe the security system in Veteris has turned less efficient than before," stated Roman, and Luciano turned extremely angry as Roman spoke against him and questioned his efficiency. 

"How dare you speak to me like that I will—" Luciano got up and was ready to attack Roman when Donovan intervened by coming between them. 

"Step back, Azazel. It is clear that Roman has decided to pick a fight when he could have complied and brought Julianne to me. It wasn't like Griffin did anything out of line and he was only following my orders before these two decided to rebel." 

"It was probably because your boy isn't trustworthy and has quite some history with Roman. Bad blood?" asked Donovan before adding, "You took the responsibility of Veteris' security but failed to notice something Julie found out. Instead of praising her, you want to punish and question her. How bored are you to pick on her without any proper reason?" 

"Moltenore has disrespected me and tried to harm Griffin. I believe the four Elders already decided if one of our disciples tried to harm the other, they would have to answer to the respective Elder," Luciano looked annoyed. The shadow from him started to spread while black smoke appeared beneath Donovan's feet. 

"I did not gather everyone here so that you both could have an audience to fight!" Ms. Dante couldn't believe that the two vampires, who were older than most people in this room, behaved recklessly. 

Luciano glared at Donovan, "Step aside, and let me deal with this. Don't worry, I will keep him alive." 

"What if I don't want to?" asked Donovan, and flames appeared in Roman's hands. 

"Looks like we'll finally be able to see who is powerful between us two," stated Luciano, and Griffin came to stand next to Luciano, waiting for his Elder's command. 

"Do you even have to ask? It is going to be me," taunted Donovan. He then said, "Before getting your pesky shadow near my son, you will have to go through me first."

"Just because you took him under your wing doesn't make him your son," at Donovan's words, Luciano rolled his eyes.

Donovan looked at Luciano's eyes and, with a serious expression, said, "He is my son by blood."

"That's bullshit," Luciano readied himself while somewhere weighing on Donovan's words. Next to the Elder vampire, Griffin looked back and forth between Donovan and Roman. When his eyes met Roman's eyes, Griffin had a shocked expression on his face as if someone had slapped him. 

How was Roman Moltenore an Elder's son? Questioned Griffin in his mind. 

Donovan said, "Roman is my son and if you try to harm him, I don't think I can sit back and watch it."